The Hershey Company is the leading North American manufacturer of quality chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery and chocolate-related grocery products. The company also is a leader in the gum and mint category. Hershey recognizes that diversity management skills are vital to the success of the organization.
Performance Management
The current performance management system at Hershey is a bottom-up approach focusing on employee empowerment. Employees throughout the company are given responsibility to set goals and track progress on their projects. This system measures both business results and whether the results are obtained using Hershey’s four core values. Teamwork is emphasized especially because the company believes in celebrating their successes as a whole. The bottom-up approach specifically appeals to the younger generation and their eagerness for challenge, autonomy, and results. This approach allows the high motivation of the younger employees to work its way back up to the older employees who may be nearing retirement age. (Noe, 55)
One way that Hershey could redesign their performance management system to appeal to the diverse age groups of employees is to focus on a developmental purpose. This method would serve as a basis for developing employees’ knowledge and skills, which would be especially helpful with the younger generation of new employees. Having a developmental purpose for performance management would mean each employee would have the opportunity to discuss their strengths and weaknesses and identify steps for improvement. Since Hershey has already implemented a partner system of pairing up one experienced employee from the baby boomer generation with one new and younger worker from the millennium generation, the personal relationships are already in place. Hershey could also use the paired-comparison method to compare each employee with each other employee to establish rankings. A contest could be established between the baby-boomers and the millennium generation, for some friendly competition.
Values
The values of the Hershey Company are the core of their shared commitment to the company and brands. This deep connection is the foundation of its success and forms the groundwork of the values shared by this company. The four identified values demonstrate that Hershey embraces the concepts of teamwork, change, and positive work atmosphere. As an employee I would have the feeling that Hershey was a global and diverse team that operates by working together, with integrity, and determined to make a difference. The first value of Hershey Company is “We are Open to Possibilities by embracing diversity, seeking new approaches and striving for continuous improvement.” As an employee I would feel that my ideas would be welcomed and that I would be encouraged to learn and grow within the company. The second value of Hershey is “We are Growing Together by sharing knowledge and unwrapping human potential in an environment of mutual respect.” Based on this value, I would expect to see a lot of teamwork where every idea is welcomed with a positive response. The third of the Hershey Company values is “We are Making a Difference by leading with integrity and determination to have a positive impact on everything we do.” This value demonstrates Hershey’s strong commitment to the community and partnering with organizations to make a difference. (Noe, 55) As an employee I would have opportunities to help with projects such as the Milton Hershey School or the “Dollars for Doers” program. The Milton Hershey School is named after the Hershey Company’s founder and provides a free K-12 education and a home on a 9,000 acre campus to more than 1,200 underprivileged girls and boys. (Gordon, 2011) The last of Hershey’s four company values is “We are One Hershey, winning together while accepting individual responsibility for our results. What I would take from this core value is that the company I work for is going to acknowledge every individual employee when celebrating success. The Hershey Company recognizes that results are not the product of individual efforts but by the collective input of the entire group.
Trends
The trend that may have the biggest effect on Hershey Company is diversity in the workplace. Currently the U.S. labor force is experiencing growing diversity in racial, ethnic, and gender terms. Immigration and higher birth rates account for an increase in Asian and Hispanic workers. There is also greater gender diversity in the workforce today than ever before. More women are entering the paid labor force and the labor force participation rate for men has slowly declined. Experts predict that by 2018, the amount of women in the civilian labor force will reach approximately 47 percent. (Noe, 31) Hershey Company has a large focus on diversity and the mission statement is posted on the company website. Hershey believes that their strength comes from bringing together people of diverse backgrounds, ideas and interests. They also provide many opportunities for employees to learn and grow in order to put their best foot forward in both the work environment and the community.
There are many ways that the Hershey Company demonstrates its commitment to diversity in the workplace. Every year they hold a companywide Inclusion Day celebration emphasizing the diversity of local communities. Several times throughout the year they sponsor Lunch & Learn speakers who discuss topics ranging from new immigrant experiences to personal empowerment for minorities and women. In addition to these annual events, Hershey has in-depth website employees can use to find information about a vast array of diversity subjects. They also send out diversity email newsletters which are designed to educate employees on specific aspects of diversity as well as to inform them about why those differences are important to our business. (http://www.hershey.com/values)
Mentoring
The Hershey Company already has a very successful mentoring program in place with their Research and Development group. The mentoring relationships are part of the organization’s planned effort to bring together successful senior employees with less-experienced employees. This partnership is successful due to the fact that the senior executives are interested in leaving a legacy and making the world better. These interests create enthusiasm about the opportunity to mentor and groom younger colleagues who will follow in their footsteps one day. (Noe, 272) One advantage of Hershey’s planned mentoring program for the R&D group is that all employees have access to a mentor, regardless of gender or race. This demonstrates that the mentoring program at Hershey is aligned with their commitment to diversity. Both the mentor and the protégé benefit from mentoring programs like the one in place at Hershey Company. The younger employees receive career support and benefits of having a positive relationship and role model. The older employees who are the mentors receive the benefit of feeling that they are contributing to the future of the organization. Mentoring programs fulfill all of the values that are the core of the Hershey organization including: seeking continuous improvement, growing together, making a difference, and winning together. (Noe, 272)

References
Gordon, M. (2011, June 7) The Hershey Company continues their charitable legacy through CocoaLink program. Retrieved from http://www.ana.net/blogs/show/id/21547

Hershey Company Website. Retrieved from http://www.thehersheycompany.com/careers/values.aspx

Noe, Hollenbeck, Gearhart, Wright. (2011) Fundamentals of Human Resource Management. United States: McGraw Hill.